Springfield Daily

UIS leads the field at MIG

UIS leads the field at MIG

The Model Illinois Government (MIG) delegation at UIS is perennially one of the school’s strongest academic teams. Lead by head delegates Payton Raso, Chloe Compton, and Cale Bergschneider, this year was no different. During the weekend simulation in the state capitol, the team won a wide array of awards and honors.

What is MIG?

MIG is an annual simulation of all the aspects of the Illinois state government. Colleges from around the state send delegations to Springfield to model the real government. Students pass legislation in the House and Senate, try cases at MOOT court, and develop a state budget with the help of the OMB analysts. Students hold elections to fill all the normal leadership positions, including governor, Speaker of the House, and majority and minority leaders for debate.

UIS won a large number of leadership elections going into this year’s simulation:

Zachary Sullivan was President of the Senate

Caitlin Osborn was Treasurer

Donnie Lewis was Comptroller

Payton Raso was House Majority Leader

Chloe Compton was Senate Majority Leader

Noah Danner was Assistant Minority Leader in the House

Joseph Partain was Minority Whip in the House

Cale Bergschneider was Majority Whip in the Senate

Looking towards next year, four UIS students won spots on the executive board. These are the students who actually ensure MIG happens every year.

Payton Raso will be Speaker of the House

Chloe Compton will be President of the Senate

Cale Bergschneider will be Comptroller

Collin Cisco will Treasurer

The delegation was recognized for their efforts this year. The delegation as a whole took home the coveted “Outstanding Large Delegation” award. Many individuals took home awards as well:

Payton Raso – Outstanding Member of the House

Chloe Compton – Outstanding Member of the Senate

Collin Cisco – Outstanding OMB Analyst

Joseph Partain – Outstanding First Year Delegate in the House

Garrie Allen – Outstanding Staff Member

The UIS delegation is advised by Dr. Ken Owen from the history department.

Senior strategist, statehouse reporter and political correspondent for Springfield Daily. Graduate of District 117 and UIS. Thomas covers stories in both Morgan and Sangamon Counties, as well as statewide politics.

UIS’ Cyber League team takes a first in national competition

UIS’ 2017 National Cyber League season has come to a close. Led by Captain Austin Bransky, the UIS team took first in the nation in Log Analysis, and finished in the top ten percent of teams overall.

What is National Cyber League:

National Cyber League is cyber-security competition based on a digital version of “capture the flag.” Teams are given a web application that have “flags” that correspond with various questions and challenges that players need to solve. These flags cover a wide range of security topics, including open source intelligence, password cracking, wireless security, enumeration of cryptography, and web application security. Points are awarded based on the difficulty of the flag.

The UIS Team:

UIS entered this year coming off of a strong 2016 showing. Returning team members performed better than last year, scoring more points with higher accuracy. Even with higher individual performance, their relative standings fell slightly.

Several students had outstanding individual performances during the regular season. Steve Berryman placed 31st, Bhavyanshu Prasher placed 37th, and Austin Bransky placed 79th in a field of over 2,400 competitors.

The UIS team placed 18th out of 182 teams nationally at the NCL’s postseason tournament. UIS also ranked first in the Log Analysis category. This was only UIS’ second season in NCL competition, and they are already planning how to keep their momentum going into next year.

War chant prohibited at University of Illinois games

CHAMPAIGN, IL – The University of Illinois chancellor says dropping the school’s “war chant” at sporting events was ultimately his call and that there aren’t plans to eliminate the Fighting Illini nickname or a popular band medley referring to Native Americans.

Chancellor Robert Jones tells The News-Gazette the chant no longer motivated football fans as historically intended. He also says it was used less than in previous years and that some people found it offensive.

University of Illinois athletic director Josh Whitman wrote an open letter Monday defending the university’s decision, saying the move “serves as a significant step toward a more unified University of Illinois.”

Jones says the school hasn’t had “systematic discussions” about the band medley composed of “Pride of the Illini,” ”March of the Illini,” and “Hail to the Orange.”